Exploiting Our Daughters: Fighting Sex Trafficking | Commentary

The stories sound too horrible to be true. One woman tells of the boyfriend she loved forcing her to perform sex acts on strangers to pay for the rent. Another young girl says she was kept in abandoned warehouses and was shipped with dozens of other women in the back of trucks like cattle. News reports detail the story of a teenage girl who had her pimp’s initials forcibly tattooed on her eyelids to show that she was his property. Sadly, the personal accounts of sex trafficking are as common as they are horrific.

For many, as awful as the stories sound, this seems like a distant issue that couldn’t possibly occur in their neighborhoods. However, the facts show that sex slavery can be traced to the far corners of our country; no community is immune. Advocacy groups estimate that more than 100,000 children in the United States are exploited every year, the majority of whom are young girls. It reaches into our urban, suburban and rural communities and crushes the hopes and dreams of far too many. A simple Internet news search turns up cases of human trafficking in Maine, South Dakota, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Louisiana, Washington and Florida in just the past month.

The reality is that many traffickers prey on the vulnerable. Studies have estimated that up to 90 percent of runaways eventually end up in the sex trade. The average age that a girl is first trafficked is 13 years old. By taking advantage and exploiting these children when they are young, traffickers make it difficult for victims to leave. Many have lost connection with family and friends and are subject to the rule of law that sees them as criminals. An escape from prostitution often means time spent in a detention center, jail or homeless on the streets. While many are living their own personal hell, for these women it’s often a case of the devil they know being better than the devil they don’t.

The sad fact is that human trafficking is a problem that is only getting worse. The growth of the Internet has brought with it the ability for pimps and traffickers to find more susceptible victims and take sex slavery underground—away from the watchful eyes of law enforcement. In order to end this problem, we need a comprehensive approach to combating it.

That is why we’ve joined together to introduce legislation that will allow young women to escape from this tragic fate. Our bill, the “Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act” (HR 3610) would change current law to ensure that trafficked minors are treated as victims, and provide an avenue for them to leave their situation. The bill requires states to pass “safe harbor” legislation that takes victims down a path of protective services, counseling and skill building rather than entering the legal system and facing incarceration.

Slideshow |

March 13, 2015

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call

Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., right, hugs Harold Schaitberger, General President of the International Association of Fire Fighters, after the Congressman spoke at the IAFF's Legislative Conference General Session at the Hyatt Regency on Capitol Hill, March 9, 2015. The day featured addresses by members of Congress and Vice President Joe Biden.